Osafo Marfo raises issues with last-minute NDC govt recruitment

The President-elect’s members of the Transitional Team have raised concerns with allegations of on-going recruitment into the security agencies and the public service without consulting them.

According to the co-chairperson of the Transitional Team, Mr Yaw Osafo Maafo, they have come across allegations where immediately after the results of the election was declared on December 9, the out-going NDC government has started converting temporary staff of political assistants and some of the staff which they took on into permanent public and civil servants.

The formal handing over processes from the NDC-government to that of NPP was started on Wednesday and addressing a meeting of the Transitional Team, Mr Osafo Maafo said complaints and allegations of mismanagement has come to the attention of the in-coming government’s team which needs to be looked into.“We’ve heard of the award of new contracts after the results of the election has been announced on the 9th of December.”

“We have heard from the grapevine a few things which has become our concern [In-coming government Transitional Team]. For instance, we have heard about on-going recruitment into the security services now, which we hope is not true.”

“We’ve heard of conversion of temporary staff of political assistants and some of the staff you took on into permanent public servants. We’ve heard of award of new contracts after the results of the election has been announced on the 9th of December.”

“We’ve heard of procurement and sale of national assets after the results. We do not want to believe that these allegations are true. I personally, I don’t and therefore I’m asking my colleague the Chief of Staff that after the election ,and the result has been declared and the change is not from the government handing over to itself, we need to be cautious, we need to be transparent, we need to be candid and we need to be factual.”

“I’m therefore appealing to our colleagues that within this period, if there is anything that needs to be done, consultation have to be brought on-board. Consultation meaning that the Office of the President-elect is there, and if there is need for an agreement to be concluded, it is only fair and it is international convention that you bring in the in-waiting government, discuss and get the green-light,” Mr Osafo Maafo said at the meeting.

He indicated that the in-coming government will probe the allegations.

On his part, the out-going government’s Chief of Staff, Mr Julius Debrah said the handing over notes were ready.

The main reason for Wednesday’s meeting was to institute various committees and consider forming other relevant ones which the team may think would be necessary as far as the transition was concerned.

Mr Debrah said the handing over notes were ready because by law almost all of it were supposed to be ready by September 2016 but between that period and December, naturally a few things may have taken place and so, “we agreed among ourselves to get everything that needed to be tied up done.”

“And we will make sure that others that are left will be ready by Monday as agreed,” he added.

By the provisions of the Presidential Transition Act 2012 (Act 845) the transition team is to make comprehensive practical arrangements to regulate the transfer of political power following a Presidential election, and to do this by forming various sub-committees that will be responsible for different aspects of the process of the transfer of power.

The law provides for the establishment of three specific committees – the inauguration sub-committee, the government machinery sub-committee and the presidency sub-committee and any other committees the transition team considers relevant for the performance of its functions.

Wednesday’s meeting was to agree on the committees to be established and the composition of each committee so that the various committees can begin their work and get on with the process of planning the inauguration ceremony, handing over the machinery of the Civil Service including the Ministries, Departments and Agencies, and ensuring the orderly transfer of the official assets and liabilities to the in-coming administration.

The formal handing over to the incoming administration is expected on January 7, 2017.